


From Rome with love

by ca_te



Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe, Chance Meetings, Italy, Klaine AU Fridays, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-14
Updated: 2013-06-14
Packaged: 2017-12-14 23:29:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/842676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ca_te/pseuds/ca_te
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kurt gets lost in Trastevere (Rome) and a beautiful stranger helps him out</p>
            </blockquote>





	From Rome with love

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a few weeks back. alianne told me that week’s Klaine Au Friday was Italian!Klaine and, being Italian, I felt I absolutely had to write something for it. So here you are :) Underlined texts are from Rachel, the ones in **bold** from Blaine and the ones in _italics_ from Kurt.

Kurt squints at the map, the sun hot on his shoulders is making his skin uncomfortably clammy. He should have known better; his dad told him to read a bit more about Rome instead of hopping onto a plane with nothing but a suitcase dutifully filled with clothes for every occasion. Kurt was the one who told Rachel he wanted to explore Trastevere on his own – “to really experience the city” – and now he is lost in the middle of a web of side streets. It feels a bit like being in a fantasy or historical novel, but Kurt Hummel is no hero or knight. He is simply hot and very annoyed.

Giving up on understanding where he is, Kurt folds up the map and sits down on the nearest surface available, which turns out to be a house step. Digging through his backpack he fishes up a bottle of water. It is lukewarm but it will do.

_Guess what? I am lost._

You must be kidding. You had a map!

_It isn’t user friendly at all._

Ask someone for directions?

_There’s no one in sight here._

The little square he has ended up in, in his attempt to reach Campo dei Fiori by foot, is quiet, almost sleepy under the noon sun. Kurt is thinking about calling a taxi – he can probably get away with blabbering the name of the street in a butchered Italian (and why isn’t that freaking street on his map, anyway?) – when the door behind him opens. Kurt hastens to get up, the bottle of water he was holding falls and rolls away on the cobble stones.

“Scusa, non volevo spaventarti.” (sorry, I didn’t want to scare you.)

Kurt blinks. The guy standing in front of him is, well, _gorgeous_ , there’s no other way to put it. Curly hair, barely tamed by a handful of gel, big eyes the color of golden whiskey. It doesn’t matter if Kurt hasn’t understood a word of what he said.

The guy shifts his weight from left to right, keys jingling in his hand.

“Va tutto bene? Oh. Sorry, you probably aren’t Italian, right?”

Kurt takes in a slightly shaky breath.

“You got it right. I’m American.”

The guy smiles, eyes crinkling at the corners. It makes Kurt want to spend the day watching him smile.

“That’s good. I’m American too.”

“Really? But you spoke…your Italian was flawless.”

Beautiful-guy laughs and Kurt’s heart almost halts, stuttering against his ribcage.

“I wouldn’t say it is flawless at all. But I’ve been here for almost a year now, so…oh, I’m Blaine, by the way.”

Blaine’s hand is warm and his grip firm. His fingertips are slightly callous and Kurt briefly pictures him playing a guitar, those curls of his falling in front of his face.

“I’m Kurt. Nice to meet you.”

Kurt watches as Blaine closes the door behind his back. It takes him a while to register he has to move in order for Blaine to climb down the steps.

“Sorry I just went and sat down like that, but I was kind of lost and…”

Blaine’s eyes grow wider and concerned.

“I can help you with that. When I first arrived here I used to get lost at least twice a day.”

“Oh, then there’s hope to learn?”

Kurt is a bit shocked when Blaine squeezes his shoulder gently. Kurt isn’t used to much physical contact, especially with people he has just met. But Blaine, with his easy smile and that smooth voice of his, seems to radiate friendliness and Kurt instinctively knows that there’s nothing to fear or worry about.

“Of course there is hope. Where did you want to go?”

Blaine is standing so close now, that Kurt can smell his cologne. It makes something flutter in his stomach and Kurt tries to focus on speaking instead.

“Campo dei Fiori?”

“That’s a nice choice. The place is lovely.”

Kurt is about to hand him the map, when Blaine covers his hand with his own.

“I can accompany you, if you like?”

Kurt swallows dry, the idea of spending some more time with this gorgeous and kind man making him slightly giddy. This kind of things does’t happen to Kurt Hummel, even now that he is living in New York.

“Are you sure? I wouldn’t want to impose or…”

“Don’t worry, Kurt. Classes are over for the semester and I’ll be heading back to the States soon, so I’m mainly relaxing and enjoying Rome these days.”

Kurt nods, slipping the map back into his backpack.

“All right then. Thank you.”

Blaine smiles charmingly once again.

“It’s my pleasure.”

*

The walk is pleasant despite the hot weather. Kurt likes to listen to Blaine as he talks, all huge smiles and gesturing hands, as though Italy has slipped a bit underneath his skin. Kurt discovers Blaine is studying in New York too – “You must be kidding.” “I swear it’s true.” “And now you’re going to tell me you are from Ohio too and this will turn into some sort of surreal theatre piece.” “Ehm.” “No.” “Sadly I’ve to inform you I’m from Westerville.” And he finds out Blaine is an art major with a passion for music on the side – “I am a student at NYADA”, “Wow, that’s neat. You must be insanely good”, “I wouldn’t say so”, “I used to be lead soloist in my high school glee club”, “Gosh, this is getting impossible. I was in my school’s glee club too!”

Rome breathes and shines under the sun all around them and Kurt has the feeling he is walking right through a dream. His cell phone keeps vibrating in his pocket, probably Rachel asking where he is, but  right now he can’t bring himself to care. Not when Blaine keeps talking and smiling and taking his hand to guide Kurt through the most crowded streets.

*

“Isn’t it incredible?”

They are sitting at one of the tables outside a small bar, looking at the market stalls scattered around Thomas More’s statue. The ice clinks in Kurt’s glass of diet coke when he puts it back on the table.

“What is incredible?”

Blaine tilts his head to the side, his intent gaze making Kurt shiver despite the warm air.

“That we lived so close for so long, but we ended up meeting here.”

Kurt thinks about all the times he has passed from Westerville, about all the regional competitions where he might have passed Blaine in the corridors, about New York and the fact that they have been breathing and living under the same sky, in the same streets.

“It is.”

Blaine smiles, his cheeks slightly redder now.

“Maybe we could…meet once we are both back in New York too?”

Kurt grips his glass a bit tighter. His head spinning, and not because of the Italian sun.

“I…I’d love to.”

*

In the end Kurt has to answer to Rachel’s increasingly alarmed texts – did you ask for directions? Where are you? Are you alive? I’m calling Burt!

Blaine accompanies Kurt to a bus stop where he can catch the right tram. They exchange phone numbers between shy smiles and promises to hear from each other soon. Blaine waits until the tram leaves, waving at Kurt who feels as though his heart is going to explode. It has been such a wonderful day, so unexpected and for that very reason so precious. Kurt almost has to pinch himself to be sure it was real and that he hasn’t been dreaming a weird version of “Roman holiday”. It is a bit sad too, though. Sure, he and Blaine had fun together, but who knows if Blaine will write, if they are really going to meet in New York.

Outside the window Rome keeps flowing, with its gorgeous buildings and its ancient beauty. Kurt startles when his phone vibrates, dragging him out of his reverie.

**I’ll be back in NY next Monday. Can I invite you for a coffee?**

Kurt bites his lower lip, not to squeal out loud.

_Yes, you may ;)_

**It’s a date then x**

_I believe it is  :)_


End file.
